Obon Festival

Obon (お盆) is a fusion of the ancient Japanese belief in ancestral spirits and a Japanese Buddhist custom to honour the spirits of one’s ancestors.

This Buddhist custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people return to ancestral family places and visit and clean their ancestors’ graves when the spirits of ancestors are supposed to revisit the household altars.

It has been celebrated in Japan for more than 500 years and traditionally includes a dance, known as Bon Odori.